The corner of Union and Madison, facing west toward downtown, beyond where 12th, Madison, and Union meet, is a signature intersection of Capitol Hill. The streets combine with the overheard trolley lines to bring your eyes to the acutely angular Viva building. With Seattle University to the south, the Ferrari dealership to the north, Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences to the southeast, and Mighty O donuts to the northeast — and Pony due south east — this intersection is a true Capitol Hill crossroads at night and at day.
9’s is a new regular photo series with a simple premise. CHS visits a corner of the Hill twice — once at 9 AM and again at 9 PM — to capture the scenes of the neighborhood in motion. Have a space you’d like us to feature? Let us know in comments.
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Love this 9am / 9pm concept! And love Alex Garland’s photography too.
thanks for the cool post!
Love this concept!
That intersection is where I am always in danger of getting pasted in the crosswalk by someone making a left turn.
Isn’t Pony due east? It’s definitely not due south.
Fixed. Thanks
Is that where the mangy “Undre Arms” apartment sat? Wouldn’t have wanted to live there, but that was old-school Capitol Hill.
The Undre Arms was on the west end of the triangle. If this photo had been taken pre-Viva, you’d see the back side of the Undre Arms over The Color Store at the point of the triangle.
Many years ago, I was on the #2 heading home with two elderly ladies seated in front of me. As the bus went by the first woman looked at the building and asked “Undre Arms?” The second responded knowingly, “I hear that place is pits!” It cracked me up 20 years ago and it still does today. :)
Wow. Alex, you are such a treasure. Only you could take that complicated, seemingly “ordinary” intersection and make it look as complex and nuanced as an Ansel Adams photo of the Yosemite Valley. Props.
This intersection looks spectacular in the two images! But it’s hateful to actually go there as a pedestrian. Several times a week, I’m almost getting killed by drivers running red lights (even after I wait) or, as the other commenter also says, somebody making a rash left turn and not considering that there could be fellow humans out and about.
It just amazes me that traffic is not quite up to pre-pandemic levels, but drivers are just as insane about making the light. I’m pretty certain that NO ONE in that intersection making a left turn looks the direction they are heading, ever. They only look at the oncoming traffic from the right to see if they can beat it. 14th and Union intersection is also notorious for this.